Love Is the Greatest Gift
by thisfairytalegonebad
Summary: Snippets of Ignis' birthdays throughout the years. Happy birthday, Ignis!


**The tag says canon compliant which is true except for the fact that Ravus is alive. Ignis is still blind in the World of Ruin snippets though.**

**There are five snippets, they take place during the following times:**  
**1\. Childhood/when Ignis met Noctis**  
**2\. Brotherhood era**  
**3\. During the road trip**  
**4 & 5: World of Ruin**

**Hope you enjoy!**

* * *

1.

Ignis doesn't remember the first five birthdays in his life. He supposes the main reason for that is that he was a very young child then and his memory simply fails him. Another reason is certainly that both his parents, always very busy and rarely able to make time for him, hadn't managed to schedule enough free time on his birthdays to make them an experience worth remembering.

He doesn't blame them. Maybe he had when he was a child, he couldn't remember, but seeing how busy he was now himself… he understood them better, at least, even if he prided himself in remembering and properly acknowledging the birthdays of each of his friends, and even of people like Jared.

The first birthday he truly remembers - and doubts he will ever forget - is his sixth birthday.

On his sixth birthday, Ignis wakes up and, to his utter surprise, encounters both his parents in their kitchen as he goes to get himself something for breakfast.

"Happy birthday, Ignis," his mother says, bright and warm, and she opens her arms for him to hug her.

Ignis steps into her embrace and brings his short arms up around her waist to squeeze her back.

When she releases him, his father rests a heavy hand on his head. "Son, today is a very special day for you."

Ignis blinks, wondering what his father means.

"We'll be receiving a guest shortly, and then we will tell you all the details. For now, why don't you have breakfast?"

With a nod, Ignis sits at the table where breakfast is already waiting, busying himself with eating while his parents discuss their work.

He is finishing his second glass of milk when there is a knock on the door and Ignis' father goes to answer it.

"Ignis, do you remember your uncle Avus?" his mother asks as his father enters with a man Ignis can't recall having seen before.

The name rings a bell, though. Ignis knows he has an uncle in Lucis, his father's brother, who works for the Lucian king. His mother asked if he remembered him, so they must have met before, but Ignis can't remember, so he just shakes his head.

"Hello, Ignis," his uncle says. He has a very pleasant voice, and even though he lives in Lucis, where people speak differently, he still sounds like everyone in Tenebrae.

"Hello, uncle," Ignis says politely, meeting the man's gaze as he's been taught.

Ignis' father gestures for his uncle to sit, then does the same, across the table from Ignis. "Ignis, son, Avus is here to take you to Lucis. You are six years old now, old enough to start your training as the young Lucian prince's advisor."

Ignis feels his eyes widen. The Lucian prince? He is supposed to leave Tenebrae and go to Lucis? And he is going to work for the King, just like his uncle?

"Will I stay there forever?" he asks, and his voice comes out smaller than he expected.

For a second, his mother looks like she might be sad, but it is gone within a second as she speaks. "You will be living in Lucis from now on, yes. You'll be allowed to come back to visit of course, but Lucis is your new home."

Ignis takes a moment to let the news sink in.

Lucis. He has never actually been there, though he didn't imagine it to be much different from Tenebrae. He just hoped the young prince was nice.

Finally, he nods. "Should I go pack my things, then?"

"Pack anything you want with you in the next two weeks. The rest will be shipped to you after you've arrived," his father assures.

Well then. There's really nothing more to say, so Ignis slides out of his chair and goes to pack.

Thirty minutes later, he emerges from his room with a small suitcase stuffed with enough clothing and his favourite book. In his hand, he clutches a stuffed coeurl, the only plush toy he possesses. He tried to convince himself he didn't need to bring it, but when he looked at it, he couldn't manage to leave it behind.

His uncle smiles at him, warm and comforting, and Ignis immediately feels a little less overwhelmed.

"I see you still have that toy. Did you know that I gifted it to you when you were born?" his uncle says.

Ignis takes another look at the toy and shakes his head. "I didn't know. Thank you," he says.

That makes one thing to remember a previous birthday by, he supposes, and suddenly he feels even more attached to the toy than before.

"Are you all set, then?" his uncle asks. "It is a rather long journey to Lucis, so we should head out as soon as possible."

"I'm ready," Ignis confirms.

His parents bid him farewell, and it feels strangely underwhelming. Somehow, it hasn't quite sunk in yet that he isn't going to see his parents again very soon. His parents have also never been the most affectionate, and Ignis has a feeling that the previous display of affection before his uncle arrived already was their actual goodbye.

Thus, it's not long before he finds himself in an expensive looking black car with his uncle.

His uncle drives the car himself, which is mildly surprising to Ignis. He doesn't know a whole lot about royalty and the people working for royalty, but in all the stories, important people usually have someone to drive them around, yet his uncle, who is clearly an important person, drives the car all by himself.

He doesn't mind, though. His uncle even lets him sit in the passenger seat even though he isn't technically allowed yet. When he asks about it, his uncle laughs and tells him that sometimes, people who work for the Crown are allowed to bend the rules a little.

Even though the landscape they pass is beautiful and his uncle is pleasant to talk to, Ignis eventually drifts off to sleep and only startles awake when the car comes to a stop and his uncle shakes his shoulder gently.

"Ignis, wake up," he says, "We're here."

Ignis blinks a few times before his eyes widen and he takes in the sight of the city surrounding him, and the huge building in front of them.

"Welcome to Insomnia, Ignis."

"It's beautiful," Ignis whispers in awe.

His uncle chuckles and takes him by the hand. Normally, Ignis would be offended - he isn't a little child anymore, he can walk by himself - but the city is as intimidating as it is pretty, and so he lets his uncle lead him inside the big building.

They take a series of turns and climb several sets of stairs, and soon he stands in what he later learns is the throne room and before a man who practically radiates authority and dignity.

"Ignis, this is King Regis Lucis Caelum, father of Crown Prince Noctis Lucis Caelum who you will be advisor to from today on," his uncle tells him.

Startled, Ignis bows deeply as he once learnt, because surely it is nothing but appropriate to bow in the presence of a king.

But the king just laughs, just as warmly as his uncle, and tells him there's no need for such formality.

"Ignis Scientia, your uncle has been my most trusted advisor as well as one of my closest friends for many years. I am nothing but confident that you will become the same for my son."

Those are very high expectations, Ignis thinks, ones he isn't sure he can fulfill. Doubtful, he looks up at his uncle for help, but his uncle just smiles and rests a comforting hand on his shoulder.

"Ignis," King Regis continues, "Meet my son, Noctis."

He steps aside and reveals a young boy who was hiding behind his legs the entire time but who Ignis didn't realize was there. The child is younger than Ignis, with big curious eyes and unruly black hair, and he stares at Ignis curiously.

After glancing at his uncle again and receiving an encouraging nod, Ignis takes a few steps forward to the prince and holds out his hand

Noctis, after the king nudges him forward a bit, grabs it with both his hands and smiles at Ignis.

And even years later, Ignis likes to think of Noct as the most precious birthday gift he has ever received.

* * *

2.

Uncle Avus stops Ignis when he is about to leave for Noct's apartment.

"Happy birthday, Ignis," he says, pulling his nephew into a brief hug before he hands him a small package. Inside is a small notebook, with ruled pages and bound with black leather. It's simple and practical; Ignis loves it.

"Thank you," he tells his uncle sincerely. "I will put it to good use."

His uncle sends him off with the order to have fun with his friends and relax a little today, and then Ignis goes to wake Noct and drive him to school.

Even in his zombie-like state, Noct remembers to mumble a sleepy "Happy b'rthday, Specs," and even gives Ignis a hug, although it's really more stumbling out of bed and slumping against Ignis than a real hug. Ignis doesn't mind at all, though. Noct's affections have become less and less frequent during his teen years, and Ignis cherishes every display of love he receives from his prince.

Ignis still feels touched by Noct's hug when he goes to his first meeting, but the good mood and the blissful smile vanish soon when the meetings grow increasingly more frustrating as the day progresses until he is absolutely done with the world by the time the last meeting is over.

He's spent a good part of his day being irritated, but now he feels drained and all he hopes for is this day to be over. He does, however, still have to drop by Noct's place again to deliver a stack of reports the prince won't read anyway, and that he will take back to his own office in a few days anyway because he'll be the one reading them instead.

When he sits in his car, he sighs heavily and just takes a few minutes to sit in peace before he drives off to Noct's apartment.

An annoying amount of traffic later, he finally enters the apartment, catching himself how he hopes Noct ordered takeout so he won't have to cook.

"Happy birthday Iggy!" three voices shout in unison, startling him into nearly dropping the reports. He manages to adjust his grip on them before they fall, except they end up falling to the floor anyway just a few seconds later because Prompto quite literally jumps him and immediately starts chattering.

Gladio collects the reports from the floor for him, and then they make him sit down at the table and start bringing in food.

The strangeness of having his _prince_ bring him food aside, he does wonder who exactly made the food. He knows Noct isn't capable of making any food that doesn't go into a microwave or includes opening the door to a delivery service person, and Gladio just flat out refuses to make anything that isn't cup noodles.

"Don't worry Iggy, Prompto cooked," Gladio tells him with a broad grin as if he knows exactly what Ignis was thinking. In fact, he most likely does know what Ignis was thinking, given that Ignis doesn't bother to hide his irritation at both their eating habits most of the time.

Prompto cooking, though… Ignis shoots Prompto a grateful smile that has him flustered immediately.

"Yeah, well," Prompto laughs awkwardly, "Couldn't let them poison you on your birthday, right?"

The food is very good; Prompto certainly knows his way around a kitchen. There is even a cake that tastes wonderful, though the decorations are a little off. Noct decorated it, Ignis later learns, and decides that explains it.

After they're done eating and Ignis doesn't think he could eat even one more bite, and after they cleaned the kitchen all while forcing him to remain seated and enjoy the rest of his favourite wine Gladio bought for the occasion, they present him with a wrapped gift. It's a small black box, and inside is a gorgeous necklace with a small skull pendant. It's the most beautiful piece of jewelry Ignis has ever seen.

He stares at his friends, blinks away tears as inconspicuously as possible and says, "Thank you, all of you."

Nobody mentions that his voice sounds a little choked up, or that his eyes are just the faintest bit red in the group selfie Prompto ropes them all into a few seconds later.

* * *

3.

Everything hurts. The lights are too bright even with his eyes closed, the hushed conversation around him is still too loud, and his throat is so parched he can barely swallow.

For a moment, he considers if opening his eyes is really worth it, but the logical part of his brain that tells him he has to figure out what is going on wins the argument against the part of his brain that just whines unintelligibly.

He groans softly as he forces his eyes open and immediately the voices around him fall silent.

"Iggy?"

In lieu of a proper reply, Ignis blinks a few times until his vision is a little less fuzzy and he realizes that all three of his friends are staring at him with both worry and relief.

"Wha-" he rasps and immediately breaks into a coughing fit so painful that tears gather in the corners of his eyes.

There's a hand on his back that sits him upright slowly, and the brim of a glass pressed to his lips. The cool water soothes his throat and makes existing a little easier, something he is very, very thankful for.

"What happened?" he inquires once he's been eased back into the soft pillows and is able to breathe again.

It's Noct who replies. "You took a bad hit. Been out for three days."

"We couldn't get our hands on a single damn curative until yesterday, and you went straight from unconscious to sleeping. You damn near kicked the bucket," Gladio continues grimly, but Ignis knows better than to assume the anger is directed at him.

"You even missed your birthday," Prompto tells him, appearing to be more upset about Ignis sleeping through his birthday than Ignis himself. Frankly, Ignis can't bring himself to really care much about it anyway right now.

When he confirms he feels up to eating - he really doesn't, he is so tired he would rather just go back to sleep, but he knows he has to eat to regain his strength. He's lost a lot of blood, he learns, which is why he still feels so exhausted even with the curative, and he needs fluids - Gladio brings him soup that he is just about able to eat by himself without dropping the spoon.

"We would've bought you cake, but then you had to go and nearly die, so now you just get birthday soup," Prompto informs him.

Ignis still appreciates it.

* * *

4.

"It has come to my knowledge that today is your birthday," Ravus says. His voice gives away nothing, as usual. "I apologize for keeping you from spending it with your loved ones."

Ignis arrived a week ago and is to remain in Tenebrae for another two at Ravus' request to aid him in rebuilding the country, a request Ignis is more than willing to grant. It just so happens that his birthday is taking place during his time away from Lucis, though.

"Do not worry," Ignis assures nonetheless. "A missed birthday is not the end of the world."

"That may be true, yet allow me to make up for it," Ravus insists. A moment later, he has moved next to Ignis' desk and sets something down in front of him. A plate, judging from the sound it makes.

"Ah… this was not necessary… but much appreciated," Ignis decides. "Thank you, Ravus."

Ravus only hums in response before he leaves Ignis alone with his work again, shutting the door behind him quietly.

Ignis reaches out and discovers a fork next to the plate. When he finds the food on the plate, he cuts a piece off with the fork and brings it to his mouth after he is sure it's nothing that will drip onto his files.

For a moment, he is unable to grasp the taste of whatever it is that Ravus has brought him, unlike anything he has ever tasted yet oddly familiar- and then he freezes as the taste of sweet berries and sugary crust climax in a breathtaking realization, the fork clattering onto the table deafeningly loudly in the empty room.

Tenebraean tarts, the very same Ignis has been trying to recreate for more than half his life for Noctis.

He eats another forkful and can't stop the tears that stream down his face.

* * *

5.

Ignis' phone goes off as he is in the middle of fighting a bunch of daemons, but by the time he's finished them off, it already stopped.

Deciding he can't afford to stand around making phone calls in the open field, he waits to call back until he reaches the haven. The caller turns out to be Prompto, as his phone tells him helpfully.

Now mildly alarmed, Ignis presses the button to call Prompto back and waits.

"Hey, Iggy!" Prompto's usual cheery voice sounds from the speaker, not even two rings later. He doesn't sound harmed, at least, so Ignis relaxes a little.

"Hello, Prompto. Was there something you needed?"

"Nope! Just calling to wish you a very happy birthday! I'd love for you to spend it with me, and the big guy, of course, I'm really sorry we're not there," Prompto tells him, voice tinged with regret.

"Nonsense," Ignis says firmly. He didn't even remember his own birthday until just now, and between the efforts of rebuilding Lucis and trying not to die in an encounter with a daemon, there really wasn't much time for something as trivial as his birthday. "Have you heard from Gladio recently?"

"Nah, but you know what, we should totally call him. If he picks up, we can do a group call to celebrate your birthday at least," Prompto suggests immediately.

Ignis doesn't have the heart to tell him no, not with how Prompto noticeably perked up at the idea, and with how quiet he has been lately compared to his usual upbeat attitude. That, and Ignis can't deny it would not be nice to hear both his friends' voices, even if he can't bring himself to care much for his birthday anymore.

So they call Gladio, and he actually answers the phone too, not wasting a second before he tells Ignis happy birthday as well, leaving him wondering if he is the only one who forgot about his own birthday.

"We gotta meet up soon," Gladio says wistfully. "I'm not far from Lestallum right now, you guys think you could make it in the near future?"

When they finally say their goodbyes and disconnect the call, Ignis is left with a warm feeling in his chest and a promise to meet up in Lestallum in ten days, an event he finds himself looking very much forward to.

* * *

**-I'm going with the fandom-popular interpretation that British accent = Tenebraean accent, therefore Ignis is originally from Tenebrae now**  
**-the notebook Iggy gets from his uncle is his recipeh book**  
**-how did Ravus know it's Iggy's birthday? Who knows, certainly not me. And did he know about the significance of those specific tarts? Probably not, but who knows (spoiler, still not me)**

**I hope you enjoyed! If you did, comments and kudos mean the world to me, and if you want to yell about those boys (or anything really) with me, you can find me on Twitter as Butterfly_OnIce and on Tumblr as thisfairytalegonebad!**


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